The snail and heliciculture market - France

However, the vast majority of heliciculturists breed only Helix aspersa, as Helix pomatia do not reproduce quickly enough in captivity to make them a sufficiently profitable market. Helix aspersa are themselves divided into two sub-categories:

Petit-gris Gros-gris

France, where snail-eating is an integral part of the country's gastronomic culture, is Europe's leading consumer of snails. Escargot is a time-consuming dish to prepare, requiring a special knowledge of the subject. The most common recipe, found in restaurants, is"à la bourguignonne", in which the snail is presented in its shell with a side dish. Today, French snail production appears to be in decline, despite the fact that nearly 16,000 tons of snails are consumed in France every year. In fact, only 10% come from domestic production, and the overwhelming majority come from imports, worth almost 48 million dollars. Nevertheless, demand remains extremely strong in the country, particularly during the festive season. The global market is also growing steadily, and was worth almost $154 million in 2016 , with a projected CAGR of 2% over the period 2016-2025.[Fooddive] At a time when ecological issues are becoming increasingly decisive factors in consumer choices, snail farming has characteristics that offer it good prospects for the future.the limited space required for a snail farm and, above all, its very low environmental impact compared with the majority of animal product farms, offer snail farming good prospects for the future.